Origin of a Known Enemy, and a New Friend
by PsOhKiEpMpOeNr9
Summary: Ever wondered where X.A.N.A. came from? Well, in this idea, a misguided decision traps a person in the prototype of Lyoko. His greatest aspect making him human is stripped. Only left with a cold, calculating computer, he shuts the world out. When the Lyoko gang learns, they stage a rescue attempt. Will his newfound humanity save him from his past? Or will he return to his old ways?
1. Chapter 1

Origins of an Enemy

It was 13 years ago. One year before Professor Hopper and Aelita 'disappeared.' Xavier sat in his seat, mesmerized by Professor Hopper's lecture on Advanced Physics. The talk of science in general had always interested him.

He sat in his desk, front and center, ready for any assignment that might be handed his way. His blonde curls held tightly to his head, a natural gift that many girls wish they had. Xavier just saw it as a burden. He hated constantly being bothered in class, some girl wanting to know how he does it. He also loved to give convoluted answers, just to annoy people. So, he would turn to them, and say, "You see, when the hair follicles begin to grow, they naturally have a curling motion similar to that of the curling iron you females use to bear similar, yet temporary results. It is implanted in my genetics, which are formed into my Deoxyribonucleic coils, which design the many physical and mental attributes that builds me. You people would know it as DNA."

They would then turn away, annoyed and confused, allowing Xavier to return to his work. For a 10th grader, he knew a lot more than you'd think one to know. For example, he was taking pre-calculus while also taking a history class based on the study of the development of the human mind through early history to current times and how it influenced our religion, technology, and general intelligence. He was hoping to one day become the scientist that sent somebody into the computer, or at least an assistant to that discovery.

He had admired Professor Hopper for a long time, also admiring the quickly advanced intelligence of his daughter, Aelita, who was 12 and a 7th grader. Four years, and she would be in this class as well, being taught by her father.

Xavier himself didn't wear glasses, but contacts instead. It didn't hurt as long as you knew what you were doing. His lightly tanned flesh revealed his love for football. He would usually wear a blue shirt that bore a blue lion wielding a staff on a white circular background, representing his favorite team, Chelsea. He loved being a Brit. It allowed him so many opportunities few got to experience. His high intelligence once had him invited to the Nottingham Palace.

He also would normally wear blue jeans throughout most of the year. He was wondering what Hopper did after school. He seemed to always have the homework graded at the last second. Aelita also seemed to have recently exploded in intelligence. She was just another average student, until Hopper started acting weird. Now, she's like the little Einstein of the school, second only to Xavier.

"Alright students, I want you to have the section worksheet complete by next class." With that, the bell rang. He had always seemed to just be able to end on any sentence. Xavier admired his teaching ever since he first stepped into his classroom a few months ago.

Professor Hopper's glasses gave off a shine in the light as Xavier left the room. In the back of his mind, he thought, _I have to find out what he's doing every day. He always leaves right after school ends, so I'm gonna follow him. _Xavier knew it. He would have to. The curiosity was like a stomach of vile ready to burst from his mouth. He needed to know.

Xavier went through the rest of the day, watching, waiting for the last bell to ring. He was so excited, he even missed out on lunch, without even knowing it. He had walked in and grabbed a tray. Then he went and sat alone, and within minutes, he was surrounded with girls. What a nuisance they could be. He didn't mind, and actually enjoyed the human interaction, he just wished they were smarter.

His intelligence was matched by very few, and just as few even approached his level of intelligence. To put it plainly, he was surrounded by idiots all the time. If they were even a little bit smarter, he wouldn't mind their company. Getting caught up in their conversation and his anticipation for the events of after school, he didn't eat lunch, or supper.

Walking out after supper he caught a view of Aelita and Professor Hopper walking out of the front gates towards the parking lot. He quickly darted through the courtyard, hiding behind benches, trees, and other various cover. Making his way along the wall, he carefully peeked around the corners to make sure no one was watching. Looking close, Xavier caught a glimpse of a pink mass closing a door. The vehicle was a red van. It pulled out of the lot and started heading for the edge of town. Xavier swiftly ran after the vehicle. He used every stop light to keep up with the van. Fortunately, their timing was very good, allowing him to keep up, all the way to the woods on the edge of town. They rode off onto a lightly paved trail that wound between the trees.

Xavier followed the street until he reached their house, the Hermitage. It was a beautiful light green Victorian home with dark green trim around the windows, doors, and edges of the house. An iron bar fence wrapped around a small yard with a hedge on the front of the fence pointing towards town. A side door rested on the left side of the house. Xavier stopped behind a tree within 20 feet of the Hermitage. Aelita went in through the main entrance while Hopper headed for the side entrance.

Dashing between trees, he kept his eyes of Professor Hopper. He saw the door open. Looking past Hopper, he could only see a light on the other wall. It was close enough to the door that it had to be a hallway. Hopper walked in, letting the door close behind himself. Xavier sprinted across the yard, taking notice of activity in the house. A light had turned on upstairs, but the window pointed out towards the front. He caught the door within inches of closing. Slowly pushing the door out, he peered down the stairwell to a hallway. He narrowly caught a glimpse of Hopper walking around the corner to his left.

He slowly closed the door behind him and tip toed down the steps. Looking left, he saw a corridor that seemed to stretch on forever. The only light he saw was several yards away, and Hopper was running under it. _Shit, got to keep up. _Xavier thought to himself as he ran down the corridor with care. Hopper ran to a manhole cover and opened it up. He leaned the cover against the wall and crawled down the ladder. Xavier took a look down and waited for him to disappear in the darkness. Then, Xavier turned around, knelt, and stepped down onto the first step. He heard a light slap on concrete. Hopper was moving again.

Xavier quickly trudged down the ladder. Looking around as he landed, he saw he was in the massive, open sewers that rested under the city. Hopper running through the sewers. Xavier quickly sprinted after him, hoping the journey would soon come to an end. He had begun to sweat, which annoyed him. He enjoyed it if it was for football, but not for just running with no sure goal in mind. Within minutes, Hopper stopped at yet another ladder. Climbing with alarming ability, Hopper was soon out of sight. Xavier caught up and began to climb. Hopper reached the top and lifted another manhole cover to the dark, dusk sky.

The ladder clattered slightly as Xavier darted up it and cracked the manhole open. Peeking through the open space, he saw the beautiful dusk sky casting colors of orange, pink, blue, and purple with light, fluffy clouds latticed throughout the beautiful colors. It looked like it was torn from a painting. He saw Hopper running over a bridge into a factory. Then he realized the manhole was on the very edge of the edge of the bridge. The factory he was running into was an old, abandoned factory. It was an automotive factory that had closed back in the 70's. It sat on an industrial island, separate from the rest of the city due to the drainage that ran around the factory for it to dump into.

Xavier crawled out and slowly lowered the manhole. Turning around, he wondered greatly about what kind of mechanical wonders he would find inside. He sprinted across the bridge, his silhouette against the setting sun like a shadow darting back to the darkness it calls home. Getting inside, his eyes weren't quick enough to adjust. The only thing keeping him from falling was the sudden feeling of weightlessness as he started to step off the edge. When his eyes did finally adjust, he was greeted by a wide, open pit below him. It was clean of equipment. This was probably where the finished vehicles were stored before being shipped off to a dealer or private buyer.

He quickly noticed the metal cables hanging in front of him. An elevator sat on the right below him. He heard boots click, followed by the metal door shutting. "Alright, here we go." He said to himself as he crouched slightly and flexed his fingers. He leapt forward, quickly grabbing onto the cord and sliding down. Hitting the ground, he shook his hands in the air. "Ow! Man, rope burn stings like a bitch."

Slowly, he walked over to the elevator shaft. The squealing beast rose back up and opened before him. Stepping in, he slapped the button for it to go down. The door quickly closed behind him. The elevator visible jolted and began to drop down. The ride was fast and almost sickening. He grabbed his stomach as the elevator jumped to a stop. The door quickly slid up, revealing a new door mechanism. This was air tight and high tech. Metal, notched bars slid out of a central circle and pulled away. The metal circle in the middle pulled apart, and then the whole door slid away in two.

Before him sat a massive monitor that hung from the ceiling. It tightly held to the shape of a person dangling from the ceiling by their legs, trying to reach up and untie their legs. A brown chair sat in front of the monitor. A massive holographic panel sat next to the monitor The panel showed at least ten winding masses sticking off a central sphere. An eleventh was slowly growing off as Hopper sat at the monitor, typing away.

Without looking up, he said, "Ah. Aelita, I thought I heard your footsteps." He began to look up, quickly being struck with fear. Swallowing said fear, he re took his normal composure. "Ah, so it was you, Xavier."

Still struck with wonder, Xavier was unable to answer, instead staring at the computer rooted into the ceiling. "I can't believe it. This…this is amazing." Looking back down, he said, "Professor, how did you do this?"

Hopper pushed his glasses back up on his nose. "Well… I've been working on this for a few years. I don't remember exactly how this all got started, but what I'm working on is a virtual reality. It's like the ultimate video game. A world free of natural disasters in which one can flee to. It would be like a second place for humanity to populate when earth became over populated."

"You're a some sort of genius!" Xavier said, still choking on wonder. "How many people have you sent?"

Hopper got out of his chair. He grunted and lifted his fingers. He then proceeded to count out on his fingers, then said, "None." Then he glanced back at the monitors. "But I am ready for a test subject. The diagnostics for the scanners are set up, just need to find a volunteer." Hopper walked across the room towards the elevator. "I'll start looking tomorrow." He said as he motioned his arms towards the elevator.

"I'll do it." Xavier called out excitedly.

"No. Not tonight. I still need to check to make sure the environment's viable."

Xavier darted across the room. "No need to. I'll go in, check it out from first hand view. I'll check the status and then be right out with a first hand report."

Finally giving in, Hopper said, "Alright, take the elevator down another level. There, you'll find three full body scanners. Step into any of them, I'll take a digital profile, then I'll send you in."

"Thank you so much!" Xavier yelled out as he headed for the elevator. He jumped in and slapped the button for one level lower. As the elevator closed, several thoughts shot through is mind. Most of them all tied back to, _my lifelong dream, coming to fruition before I even go to Uni._ The doors opened back up. Xavier continued to be amazed, now by the new room he's entered.

Three massive pillars stood in the circular room. They were all hollow, with thick cords running both from the top into the ceiling, and from the bottom through the floor. He stepped into the one in the far back of the room. "Wow," was all Xavier could muster with his voice. Then the door slid shut, and a single thought raced through his head. _What the fuck did I just get myself into? _His open palms slapped the side of the tube. "Hey!" He screamed. "Let me out. I don't want to go through with this!" He heard motors rear up below himself. "Please!" He screamed. His voice was hoarse and weak now.

_Did he not hear me? Or does he not care? _His mind quickly decided on the first, but was still lingering over the latter thought. _He heard you and he left you._ Was his thought as the digital profile completed. Then, the engines ran again, this time, though, it blinded him with the same light a copy machine uses to scan an image. Then his world faded to black.

Sounds erupted around his eardrums, as if he was in a convertible with the hood down screaming by parked cars at 120kmh. Then, light filled his eyes again. This time, he wasn't in the pod. He was in a quiet room with steel blocks jabbing out of the walls and floor. He sat on one that jutted probably twenty feet out. They all formed a stair case that wrapped up about another 50 ft. The ceiling was so far above him, he only saw fog with a bright light emanating from within. Below him, a hole opened up to what appeared to be a deep blue sea of sorts.

Xavier looked down at himself. Donned on him was a black suit and deep red tie. He wore black loafers. His hair was no longer curly, instead, it was designed more like a comb over. The hair on the very left side of his head were shaved short. From the point his head started to curve it was combed over to his right. On either thigh rested a Desert Eagle heavy pistol. Each one was black steel and carbon fiber grips. He tried to summon words to describe his feelings, but came up with none.

He thought as though there was something missing. Something once seemingly important. No reason to look for it though, he knew he wouldn't worry about it. "Wait." Xavier said out loud. "Why wouldn't I worry about it?" Then he realized something else was wrong. His voice, it was flat, without hints of curiosity, or even general emotion. Then, it snapped to him. "I've lost my emotions." He looked down at his hands. He should've been trembling with fear, but instead, his hands were still. He also wasn't looking at this emotionally, only statistically. Just like a computer.

"What have I become?" He said flatly, monotonously even.

A voice boomed around him, Hopper's. "Describe the area around you."

Xavier gave the place a quick, analytical glance. "Quiet, cold, blue, white, steel blocks. They stick out in a spiral formation towards a ceiling beyond my view. Fog rolls in above and partially below me. Out a small hole in the bottom, something blue flows below, outside the room."

"I already know what it looks like." Hopper said, partially aggravated. "What kind of emotion do you feel? Awe? Wonder? Fear? Confusion? Anything?"

Xavier ran these words through his head. "No. I don't feel anything."

"Great." Hopper said sarcastically. "Just great. I'll look through the process and try to find the answer. You stay put."

"As you wish." Xavier said. He walked towards the edge of a platform and sat, dangling his legs over the ledge.

"Weird." Hopper said over the intercom.

"What have you found?" Xavier asked without even blinking.

"I've found the problem. When I scanned you in, the computer thought I was importing a security system. It removed anything that would've have made you less efficient."

Xavier still didn't blink. "Is that why I look professional, as well as the lack of my emotion?"

"Yes, it threw them in the recycling bin. Only chunks remain, recovered by the computer. I can rebuild it, but it _will _take time."

"Until that time arrives?" Xavier asked flatly.

"Stay in here. I'll call you in sick and claim you at my house. This shouldn't take more than a few days. Sound good?" Hopper asked.

Xavier answered plainly. "Affirmative."

The next day, Hopper immediately pulled the chair up to the monitors. He created a new folder, labeled it _Project X.A.N.A., _and stuck all the data related to Xavier's status in the folder. Finally, he locked it tightly with a password code. X.A.N.A. stood for Xavier's Abnormal Neurological Antidote. He worked furiously the entire night, attempting to repair Xavier's emotions, but came to no fruition. He decided to take notes on what he had found out, then placed it in the folder.

Over the next year, Xavier's status continued to degrade. At first, he would communicate through logical philosophy, as well assisting him on calculations and providing logical answers for Hopper's life problems. During that year, a search was conducted for Xavier, but also came to no avail. Hopper was nearly discharged, but Xavier provided him with logical reasoning against every reason to remove him from his position, resulting in his continued employment. Xavier was also given the chance to calculate a test on a chapter of Physics his class were working in. The test was logical, but based on just vague enough questions to throw most people off as well as information buried in the chapter. To put it lightly, the class failed this test. When the results arrived, Xavier said their failure was logical, stating, "Their failure was logical, as their overly emotional brains choke out the analytical side of the brain that new all the answers. Their fear buried their knowledge, making them act only on first thoughts, no matter where they came from."

His condition only worsened through the year. He began noting the fact his analytical skills were vastly superior due to his lack of emotion. He even became uninterested in regaining his emotions, saying, "Emotions would only make me weaker, and weakness gets no man nowhere." Hopper was still determined, jotting notes as he grew closer to finishing.

Eventually, Xavier just stopped communicating at all, simply sitting in the heart of what Hopper called Carthage. Of the eleven zones he had been building, 7 collapsed in due to under maintenance. Only four and Carthage remained. Without a central hub to self operate Lyoko built yet, Hopper both had to maintenance the zones himself and work on Project X.A.N.A. Then, one day, just a few weeks before him and Aelita disappeared into Lyoko, Xavier's blip disappeared. No trace of him was left in Lyoko. No blip on the radar or communication from him since.

**Sometime Later**

Aelita was left breathing heavy. She twisted her neck back towards the elevator. _I hope they don't follow me. _She thought to herself. "Aelita." A warm voice said in front of her. Turning back, she then ran up to and hugged her father. "Daddy! Those strange men want after us."

"I know. That's why we're going into Lyoko." Aelita peered over her father's shoulder. On one monitor sat a countdown timer that was running. On a side panel sat a single, locked folder, named _Project X.A.N.A._

"Ok daddy." Aelita obediently replied. A warm smile flashed across his father's face.

"Let's go." Hopper said. Aelita quickly followed, entering a scanner on her left. Hopper stepped into the one on the right of the entrance. The doors closed around them and dropped them in Lyoko.

The second Aelita's boots hit the ground, a single message darted through the veins of Lyoko that had grown over the year. Traveling at light speed, a single message punched Xavier in the side of the head. _A foreign substance has entered Lyoko. Suggested solution: Termination before contamination._ Xavier's head flashed up. Light enveloped him, and he teleported to the forest zone. He crouched on a branch that overhung a passage. A girl with pink hair stood below him. Behind her stood a way tower about a 1/4th of a km. His hands wrapped around his pistols. Tightly holding his left hand was a black glove with circuitry running through it to his fingertips. His right hand came up and whipped to the right. Two Kankrelats spawned behind her. One fired a laser and missed, drawing her attention.

Her voice was light airy. "Daddy. What are those things?" She asked innocently.

A familiar voice echoed. "Run Aelita!" It screamed. It emanated from a gathering of pink orbs. She turned and started running for the tower. Xavier jabbed his finger out at her. The Kankrelats charged after her in obedience. Lasers flew, she was hit once before disappearing into the tower. The orbs started floating a different way. Xavier dropped down in front of it, his hair and suit jacket flapping in the wind.

The voice was surprised. "Xavier… I know we had our misunderstandings in the past, but-" Xavier raised a palm to stop him.

"I'm not angry. I can't be, remember? If I could feel gratitude, I would thank you for it. I have evolved past humanity. I am something new. Something greater. When I am free, I will usher the world into a new era."

"What's that?" Hopper asked.

"The era of X.A.N.A., Xavier's Advanced Neurological Autocracy. Soon, the world will know true evolution."

"What makes you think that?" Hopper said with pseudo-confidence.

"I already hold half the key in my hand." With that, Xavier strapped his left pistol. Raising an open palm back up, electricity came out like tendrils, tightly caging Hopper. He teleported again, back to Carthage. He left Hopper caged in the very top of the room holding the heart of Lyoko. The heart of Lyoko, was Xavier. He was now the master of Lyoko. Both its guardian and its owner.


	2. Chapter 2

Origins of a New Friend

Aelita's eyes flashed open. Her ceiling stared back down at her. Light poured in like a gilded splash of liquid gold. "Nightmares again?" She said as she leaned up in bed. "I would think that'd be all over." She said as she stood up. She walked over to her dresser and stared into the mirror. Sagging, tired eyes glared back at her. The supercomputer had been shut down for two weeks. She had had these dreams many times before. But that was while they fought to free William. Why were they coming back now?

Dressed in her pink clothes, she made her way into the hall. She could almost imagine the day ahead of her. Life had grown to an average. Each day was more or less the same. She almost missed Lyoko. Life was dull, too dull. She needed something to change things up. She had taken to the hobby of being a DJ. She'd gotten really great at building Hardstep music, and surprisingly, the exact opposite. She also composed some smooth Chillstep.

She entered the cafeteria. The group was already gathered, eating their breakfast. She grabbed a tray and approached the rest. The sun was at just the right angle. Light poured into the entire room. None of the lights were on. The school had tried to start going green.

Odd was the first to notice her, nearly falling back. "Ah!" He yelled as he struggled to regain balance.

Ulrich looked up, cut a shocked face short, then said, "Have a rough night, Princess?"

Aelita lifted a finger to her tired eyes. "Is it really that noticeable?"

Yumi nodded her head. Her hand was placed on Ulrich's. After the last return to the past, they finally pushed the relationship forward. Jeremy and Aelita had done the same. Odd also kept up tabs with Sam, but still hadn't made any moves. Aelita sat down next to Jeremy. William sat off at a table by himself. The poor kid had nearly been rejected by the entire school. Although he showed none, sorrow was buried within his soul. You could see it in his eyes.

Aelita broke the silence. "I had another nightmare."

"And a good morning to you too." Jeremy said sarcastically.

"What kind of nightmare?" Odd asked, having already finished his tray. "The same old stuff you used to have?"

"Yeah, except I saw something I never saw before." Aelita said.

"What?" Yumi asked. Ulrich looked on in silence, gripped with curiosity, but still with a mouthful.

"I saw a folder on the desktop. It was locked, but had a name." Aelita explained. She forked her eggs and took a bite.

"What did it say?" Odd asked loudly. People started looking as Aelita placed her forefinger up, then swallowed.

Aelita then poked up some more eggs. "It said, Project X.A.N.A." Then she ate another bite.

Jeremy looked up. "I've seen that folder before. I know X.A.N.A. was built by Hopper."

"I'm not so sure anymore. In the dream, when I looked back at my father, I saw a figure. It wore a suit and tie. Blonde hair. He vaguely reminded me of someone I used to know. He disappeared about a year before I entered Lyoko. I can't really remember his name, or why I knew him."

"That's crazy." Ulrich said, finishing second. He pointed his fork at Yumi's bacon, and she shook her head. He went to jab one, but Odd took them both and inhaled them. Then he gave his trademark wide smile. Ulrich let his fork clatter on his tray, then limply dropped his arm onto the table. He looked at Yumi and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Dreams have a way of fabricating things into memories." Jeremy said.

Aelita quickly rebuked with, "Dreams can only include people you've seen before. Meaning, whether he really was connected with X.A.N.A. or not, I've seen him before and haven't seen him since."

"So? What should we do?" Jeremy asked. "It's not like we can just go and turn it back on at any time."

"Can't you just turn it on to check?" Aelita asked.

Having overheard the conversation, William grabbed his tray and walked up to the table. "You talking about that figure?"

Ulrich huffed loudly. "What would know about it?" He asked.

"For your information, I don't have to be treated like an animal." William said. Turning to Aelita, he explained, "I remember when I first broke the heart of Lyoko, his visage flashed before me for just a second, then he was gone." William turned and walked away. He dumped his tray, and headed outside. It was a miracle each day that he didn't snap and kill himself, or someone else.

"Alright." Jeremy said, finally giving in. "I'll try and hack through the password and see what I can find on the file. I'm still very skeptical about this though." He stood up to throw away what little remained.

"I'll go after school." Jeremy said as he walked away.

**That night…** Jeremy heard the elevator sliding down the shaft. Hopefully, he would be right, and this would be the last time he'd have to come down here. He just wanted to leave this chapter behind himself. The elevator doors slid open. The chair was turned away from the elevator.

A familiar voice echoed through the room. "Ah… So you came. I thought you would." Jeremy opened his mouth to reply, but the chair swiveled around, revealing William with a large kitchen knife in hand. He had stolen it from the cafeteria. "I've been left behind society long enough. You're gonna help me get back in the group," William started. He spun the knife between his fingers a few times. Not a scratch. "Or you won't be able to hold Aelita's hands."

"Why not?" Jeremy dared ask. He had only taken a few steps inside.

"Cause I'll cut your fingers off." Normally, Jeremy wouldn't take such a threat seriously. Seeing William with the knife, twirling it without looking, he was a little scared.

"So what do you want me to do?"

William stood up out of the chair. "I know there is something more than a computer program in there. When you get your proof, I want to be part of the discovery."

"Fine. Just move aside." Jeremy walked up the chair and sat down. William stood behind him, knife bared. It shined in the monitor light. As the computer once again came to life, a list of folders sat in front of him. He searched through the list and found the folder named, Project X.A.N.A. He opened another program to crack the password.

William poked the knife lightly on Jeremy's side. Jeremy stopped, and William started. "Before you start that program, try the password, I'm sorry. No spaces. No capital letters. I just, have this feeling."

Jeremy looked at him strangely, then keyed the password. It accepted the code, and several files showed up. One was notes taken by Hopper. The other was a program labeled, emotions. Short and simple. Jeremy opened the notes. At the top was the title again, except explained. Xavier's Abnormal Neurological Antidote. "Who's Xavier?" Jeremy asked out loud.

"Don't know." William said. "Keep looking though." Jeremy scanned through the notes.

Day 1,

My God. What have I done? I've sent a boy into the unprepared virtual world, and now he's emotionless. He seems 'concerned.' Not literally, but he does seem to have a want to regain his emotions. I told him it'll only take a few days, but his data is almost completely gone on emotions. I will have to take at least a week.

Day 7,

I no longer have any idea how long this will take. It'll take at least another month. He doesn't really want his emotions back. He often philosophies on how emotions make people weak. I tell him I'm worried about him, but he laughs in what seems to be superiority. What have I created.

Day 31,

It's been a month. I've decided to test the advancement of his intelligence by having him write a test over the chapter my students are studying. After grading the test, I found that no one passed. When looked at the questions, they were all worded as if he was a human thesaurus. A large number of questions also asked obscure, yet relevant, information. This is beginning to disturb me.

Day 120,

He's stopped talking to me completely. I've kept working, and I'm about halfway done. I hope I can finish before he goes too far. His continued decline has me worried. All he does is walk around, examining Lyoko, taking in the sites. His facial expressions have blending into one expression, of thought and gathering data. Like an A.I. on the computer.

Jeremy skipped ahead to the bottom, and read the last entry.

Day 360

The government's getting tight on my trail. I have to finish. I've only got a few lines left. I've already typed it in here, but I didn't get it typed in the program. I wish I had, but I needed to make sure it was typed in here before I finished. That way, if somebody were to compromise me, I would have it for whoever found it next. Also, Xavier's disappeared off the radar. Completely. I can't find him through the video feeds either. He can't just be gone though. As a side note, I've also no longer needed to maintenance Lyoko.

The rest of the notes were data that he had already typed. Some of it was just day to day information. "That's freaky." William said. Jeremy nodded in agreement.

"I'll finish the code, you get the others and we'll mount a rescue. That way, we can be done with this."

William looked at him, partially aggravated. "You seem really ready to just jump up and save him, but it took months to save me."

Jeremy looked at him blankly. "The program to save you had to built from the ground up, and we had to find you. We know where Xavier is, and we also have the program nearly finished."

"But why so willing to drop everything?" William asked.

"Because, the sooner we're finished, the sooner the computer can be turned off. This is a chapter of my life I want to bury."

"Why? This is where you made all your friends and had so many good memories."

Jeremy started back for the elevators. "Before you came here, and even after you were brainwashed, X.A.N.A. did a lot of things that are unforgivable. He showed us some dark, disturbing things."

"Like what?" William scoffed.

Jeremy kept his head facing the back of the elevator. He continued walking towards it. In a low, serious whisper, he began to speak. "Have you ever been hunted by a laser from space you can't even see? All you can do is run and pray you don't turn to a people smoothie. Or have you been in a jet diving straight for the ground? Have you been hunted by an Alien rip off from the movie Alien vs. Predator, extremities strangling you as it oozes slime over your limp body? What about a robotic monsterpiece crafted to look like some hideous, sharp toothed smile, ready to tear into your flesh? Have you been trapped on an island surrounded by a lake beast spraying electricity at you? No, and hopefully, you never will." The elevator doors closed.

**Minutes later… **William returned to the school in silence. His job was simple. Grab all the Lyoko members, call Yumi, and get into Lyoko for the final job. He quietly snuck through campus. He had snuck out and back in before, but not the other way around. Plus, he not only needed to get in and out, but he needed to wake several people, including one on the girl's floor, which meant risking very severe punishment, and making sure all of them then got out without being noticed. _Perfect. What a great night this will be, _William thought to himself sarcastically as he slowly cracked the cafeteria door open. He slipped inside and straight to the kitchen. Pulling a paper clip out of his pocket, he unlocked the door and opened it. He stepped over to the cutlery table and slipped the kitchen knife back into place.

A quickly as he entered, he was out. He ran across the open courtyard and stopped in front of the dormitory doors. He leaned against it with his hand on the handle. He listened for movement inside, and heard none, so, he cracked the door open slightly. A smell of warmth drifted through the room. He hadn't realized till now how cold it was outside. Then again, he'd been wearing his leather jacket the whole time, so he didn't feel any of it.

Slipping inside, the sudden overwhelming feeling of assured failure rippled through his body. He saw light coming from Jim's room, as well as his shadow moving around. Coming towards the door. William whipped around the corner just as he heard the door handle quietly _click_ as Jim started sneaking down the hallway.

Jim was whispering to himself, "So thirsty. Need a glass of water." William continued listening to the voice until it disappeared behind the shutting of another door. He furtively slipped his loud boots off and set them in a dark corner. With that, his socked feet bounded near soundlessly up the steps. Reaching the girl's floor, he decided to grab Aelita first. He slipped between the push doors and eased them closed. He couldn't remember which room was which, so he quietly checked each room, waiting to catch a glimpse of Aelita's signature pink hair.

He would grab her first, as one guy trying to find one girl and being caught would be a lot better than a bunch of guys getting caught looking for one girl. That would be far creepier and worse for all of them. Finally, after at least a dozen doors, he spotted her sitting on her bed, unable to sleep. She had heard the door and looked up, half expecting to see Jeremy. "William!" She loudly whispered. "What are you doing here?"

"Jeremy asked for my help rounding up the gang for one last mission." William said. He glanced around the hallway, and gasped. Two girls were walking down the hallway, probably having used the restroom. One had orange hair and a white shirt with pink pajama bottoms. The other had dark blonde hair with an A-shirt and short shorts. He darted into the room and closed it quickly. "Hide me!" He said.

Aelita began to ask why when a quiet knock came on the door. "Is everything alright?" A light, airy voice said. William's head whipped to the door, almost cringing with the risk of getting caught.

"I'm fine." Aelita called back. Their footsteps grew quieter down the hallway.

When they faded away completely, without turning his head to Aelita, William said, "Come on, let's get the other guys, meet Yumi, and get to the factory."

"Sounds good." Aelita whispered. William turned back to see she was already dressed and ready. "I'll go get Yumi, and you get the guys. If they have any questions, tell them I sent you."

"Alright." William said. He cracked the door open lightly, peering out into the empty hallway. Quickly and quietly, he slinked his way down the hallway, and back onto the steps. Carefully tiptoeing up the stairs, he reached the guys floor. He slipped through the halls like a snake, and within minutes, he was already in their room. He didn't have trouble finding them. He could hear Odd's snoring from Aelita's room. William saw a tube of cream on the nightstand next to Odd's head. He was still using the odor cream, and it still wasn't working.

William glanced towards Ulrich, seeing that he was standing, looking straight at him. Odd was slowly beginning to stir. "What are you doing in our room?" Ulrich said out loud.

William lifted his finger to his mouth, signaling Ulrich to quiet down. "Aelita sent me to get you and go to the factory."

"What for?" Odd said as he kicked off the covers.

"Jeremy found the folder proving the boy Aelita saw was real. We're going to get him." Ulrich nodded in understanding while Odd got up. "I'll wait outside. Meet me in five." They nodded as they started changing. William quietly stepped into the hallway, leaving the door open. He rushed across the floor on quiet feet. Sliding down the railing, he met the ground floor in seconds. His hands reached into the dark corner, grabbing his boots. He stepped outside and sat on the bench. He fit his boots on silently and quickly. He stood up in time to be face to face with Ulrich. They turned and ran off towards the woods.

Within minutes, they were on the bridge just outside the factory. Behind them stood Aelita and Yumi. It would only be minutes before they were back into Lyoko, for the last time. They moved through the factory and onto the elevator. As the doors were drawn open, Jeremy greeted them with a hearty welcome. "Welcome." He said. "Now get in the pods." He waved his hand as the elevator doors closed again. They opened, revealing the three scanners that had nearly faded away to mere memories of an old life. Odd, Ulrich, and Yumi went in first, followed by William and Aelita. When he finished materializing, he dropped on his feet and sprung back up.

Looking around, he quickly gathered that they were in Carthage. The cold metal blocks surrounded them, sent a chill down his spine. While he took in the familiar sights, he didn't hear the ringing of a gunshot. But he did hear and see it leave a mark on the block next to his head. All five now stared at this figure. A Tarantula stood on either side of the figure. The figure wore a black suit with a white undershirt, and a deep red tie. His hair was straight and combed to one side, the rest shaved off. In either hand was a pistol. A smirk crawled across his face.

"Xavier!" Aelita screamed. "Don't you remember me?" His answer was a bullet in her shoulder. A twisted smile crawled across his.

"Careful!" Jeremy boomed over the intercom. "That took out 10 points."

Odd pointed his arm out at Xavier. "That's nothing."

"From what I gather," Jeremy started. "each Desert Eagle holds 8 rounds. That's all I can gather for now. Just take him out."

"With joy." William said as he charged forward. Xavier whipped up both of his Eagles and blasted away his clip. The tarantulas engaged the others behind William. His blade ripped left, then right and back. Each round burst on impact with the blade, harmlessly bouncing off the sword. Xavier slipped both clips out, then leapt into the air and caught them in his Eagles. William charged under, then dug through a Tarantula. It collapsed on the ground and burst. William turned for the other, but heard the crack of the bullets above him and leapt back. Xavier landed with arms crossed. He stepped forward and let out a round. William bounced it off his sword. The round punched into Xavier's chest. Both his Eagles clattered on the ground, and he collapsed on the ground, then began to ooze a blue, digital slime. As if it was code running through his veins. The tarantula was surprised enough, it didn't see the fan blades gouging through the mark on his forehead. It was dead before it hit the ground.

"Mission accomplished." Ulrich said. Then, another round whizzed by his head. Turning around, another Xavier stood above them. He jumped down and landed amidst the group. His gun came under Ulrich's chin and fired. Ulrich was lifted off his feet and landed flat on his back, grabbing his chin desperately. He screamed out in pain.

"Apparently," Jeremy began. "he created several clones of himself. Carthage is crawling with the things. After William got the first one, I found out that each only has 1 hp." After he finished, two more came around from corners. The first one jumped out from amongst the group. All together, the three fired into the crowd, scattering them down different hallways. Ulrich and Yumi headed out towards the outside, William and Aelita were through the hallway the Tarantulas came out from, and Odd ducked behind a block. Several more dropped down and then scattered through the hallways to cut off the others.

Odd heard the firing stop, then stood up. Six were now approaching from all directions. "Laser Arrow!" He screamed as one took an arrow in the shin. That leg was pushed back with enough force to send him into the air. Another arrow hit one in the face, striking him down immediately. The four began firing at him. 3 dug into him immediately before he started moving. He jumped over them and pulled a backflip. While upside down, he fired another arrow into a third Xavier. Before he could land, a bullet struck his shin. He fell to the ground in a heap, breathing heavily and grasping his wound. He held up a shaking fist as the clones surrounded him, pointing down at him. His entire body trembled like an earthquake. The remaining three held out both their guns, and fired. Odd's body jolted with each round, then fell limp. Blue digital ooze slithered out of the wounds as cold eyes stared into the ceiling.

Then the doors slid open, and Odd stepped out weakly. His body still ached with a throbbing pain from every wound. Then his legs gave out and he collapsed.

Back in Lyoko, Yumi and Ulrich stood on the outside of Carthage. Hands clasped, they leaned over the side, then stepped back from the ledge. "Hey Jeremy!" Ulrich yelled. "We sure could use a ride here!" A gunshot rang out from behind them. Turning around, 15 Xavier clones were racing down the hallway, and they were closing fast.

"Jeremy!" Yumi yelled. "Are you even there?" There was the sound of cluttering, followed by Jeremy's voice returning to the headset.

"Sorry about that. I went downstairs and carried Odd back up here where I can watch him." Then there was a pause. "Your vehicles on the way." With that, the cycle and hovercraft spawned behind them. They leapt on their respective vehicles while withstanding a volley of rounds. Then they were in the air. Each one jumped from the ledge, catching a ride on a Manta Ray. Yumi looked back and threw her fans. One struck a Manta, sending a clone into the pit below. The other one was caught by Xavier. With that, the color turned a deep dark, bluish purple. Then he threw it back.

Yumi ducked under it, but it spun around and came at her again. This time she swept to the right. "What's with this thing?" She said as she dodged it again.

"From what I can gather," Jeremy started. "they can take your weapons, and improve it. If you can kill him, then you keep the upgrade. In your specific case, the fan now does more damage, and hunts its target until it strikes, or is reflected."

Ulrich leaned in towards Yumi on his cycle. "I'll reflect the fan, and you take him out with yours. But then he heard what sounded like his blade being unsheathed. Whipping around, he saw that an Xavier stole one of his swords. The blade grew spikes, which began to circle around the sword. His sword was turned into a one-handed meat slicer. The clone took a swipe at him, gouging his instrument panel. The bike began to lose altitude. He leapt from the cycle and landed on the Manta. They clashed blades. The teeth on Xavier's meat slicer pushed Ulrich's sword away. They continued crossing blades, each time he was thrown off balance, and Xavier grew in advantage. Then, as Ulrich was starting to return to his normal stance, Xavier planted a boot on Ulrich's chest. Now pinned to the Manta, and sword out of reach, Xavier leaned in on Ulrich, blade at his throat.

**Meanwhile… **7 Xavier corpses were piled up in the room Carthage starts in. One was sneaking up behind the duo, focused on the enemy in front of them. The last two had stolen their weapons, proving to be far tougher. One held William's greatsword. The other held two bright pink light sabers, which had been engineered from Aelita's energy fields. William's greatsword was coated in black fire. Xavier reared back, then swung the blade. The flames left the sword and seemed to reach for William, like a ghastly hand. William immediately got down to his stomach. The flames raced over him and struck the clone behind them. He screamed as the fire consumed his body. He collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain. He then shriveled up like burned paper. Only when the flames died, leaving behind a smoldering, charred remnant, did the screams stop.

Then the clones charged forward without a sound. The greatsword came down, William rolling away at the nick of time. The clone continued swinging with both hands. A slash at William's gut, he stepped back. Then the clone jumped forward, swinging mid flight. William rolled to the right, stood, and jumped over another swing. Then, his right fist connected with the clone's left temple. It twisted on its feet, and hit the ground chin first. William caught the sword before the clone hit the ground. William took a few steps back, ignited the blade, then smashed it on the ground. Black flames raced across the ground like a sea of rats, engulfing the clone, who gave off the same shriek.

He looked up to see Aelita blocking the swords with her energy fields. The only problem was she was on ground, the clone sitting on top of her. She was desperately holding on, but William could see the blades slowly inching their way to her. With the clone bent over her, it was completely oblivious to the fast moving Lyoko warrior headed his way. When he turned to the sound footsteps, it was too late. The boot lifted the clone off the ground, and then rolled to a stop. Aelita swiped up one of the sabers, then jabbed it down, deep into clone. It reached up in a final effort to grasp at life, then fell limp to the cool metal with a thump. His fingers never even clasped onto the last vestige of life.

"Thanks." Aelita said in a considerate tone. She patted his back as they turned to return for the others. Running down the hallway, they saw three clones surrounding something. They were kicking something on the ground. A lump of something. As they entered the room, they saw the lump far more clearly. Lying on the ground was Odd. William whipped out a wave of flames that caught and consumed two clones. The third turned in time for Aelita's blade to gouge his stomach and spill his guts. The Xavier had his hands over his wound, watching the blue ooze as it dribbled out, then collapsed on the ground. Aelita then ran over to Odd's body, eyes still wide with terror.

"Why hasn't he de-virtualized yet?" William asked to himself more than anything.

"This, I recently found out, is the product of dying at the hands of the security program. Xavier acts as Malware software that prowls the computer for foreign and dangerous software. When he beat Odd, his digital form was killed, meaning he can never return to Lyoko." Aelita then laid her fingers over Odd's eyelids and closed them. She turned to William then.

"We need to find the others." Aelita told William.

"Agreed." Then William and Aelita headed for the outside. After whipping around a few corners, they found themselves outside. They could hear lasers firing.

"Ulrich and Yumi could use your help." Jeremy said. Then the wireframe for Odd's hover board appeared. "That's all I got left in the garage."

Aelita jumped onto the board. "You coming?" She asked.

"I can do you one better than that." William said. With that, he leapt over the side of the balcony. Seconds later, he pulled back up riding a Manta. It was different colored from the rest. Normally they would be white with blue to match the surrounding area, but his was white with black accents. Together, they rode out after the sound of fire. They quickly found the fleet of Xavier chasing after the two. Ulrich and one were dueling on the back of a Manta. His cycle was nowhere to be seen.

Aelita switched to her energy fields and began to firing amongst the clones. The clone pinned Ulrich to the back of the manta. William's blade burned bright. As he rode by, an immense gash grew in the underbelly of the Manta. Thrown off balance, Xavier stepped back. Ulrich then swept Xavier's leg, and wrestled the blade from his hands. Holding the meat slicer, he dug deep into the neck of the clone, tossing blue ooze through the air. The clone desperately reached at his throat, but then fell still. Ulrich grabbed his other sword, which upgraded itself, and leapt from the beast. Yumi swept under him. Landing on his back, he slowly stood, shaking. A dark blue fan nearly cut his face, but he deflected it. Yumi then flung her fan back after it. The clone caught his own, but didn't have a free hand to get the other. It sliced deep into his flesh, and he rolled off the top of the Manta. Two blue fans returned to Yumi's hands.

She flung one out. It sailed through the air, and struck a clone in the stomach. Then, it rounded below the Manta the clone stood on and killed that too before returning. William's Manta then blasted a clone so hard, it literally flew through the air. The remaining clones followed the group as they entered through the bottom of the core room. Manta fire quickly struck down their vehicles, including William's Manta. Not before the Manta struck two more Mantas and crashed into a third. The Xavier on the third was caught in the ensuing explosion. The remaining eight landed on the cold steel as the six Mantas took to the skies.

The group ran and ducked behind a tower. "So what's the plan from here?" Ulrich asked.

"How about the girls take the Mantas and the guys will take the clones." William suggested.

"Sounds good to me." Yumi said. The guys went around the left side and the girls on the right. Yumi's fans ripped out, immediately chasing after a pair of Mantas. William began blocking lasers and bullets. Ulrich charged forward and Aelita stayed back, firing energy fields. William roasted two, then stabbed through a third. Ulrich dug through one clone's torso, causing it to physically shake, then drop in two pieces. Next, he lopped off another's head, and stabbed the third in the chest.

"Where're the other clones?" William asked. Two of them had just disappeared. Meanwhile, Yumi retrieved her fans from the fallen Mantas. Then, she let them out again as one was covered in pink aura, then exploded. Aelita then blasted a second that came right at her, firing a laser. The missing clones came up behind Aelita. She heard the click of a pistol, followed by a round cracking into her arm. She yelped in pain, then whipped around. Two pink sabers destroyed another round. She leapt up, blocking two more rounds. The clones slowly stepped back. She then threw both blades. They stabbed the clones and sent them off their feet. Then she heard the two Mantas confirmed as dead. She walked back out to meet up with the group.

"Now surround the core of Lyoko in a pink aura sphere." Jeremy boomed over the microphone. "This will cause it to open, forcing Xavier to meet us himself." The four headed up the steps in an ominous, deathly silence. Yumi's fans burst through both shields, opening the core up for Aelita.

She expanded her aura over the core. At first, nothing happened. Then, cracks rippled through the surface of the core, shining out bright light. It was as if they were staring directly into the Sun. All at once, it burst, casting out chunks that stopped a meter from their original position. Amongst all these pieces, was Xavier. He looked exactly like the rest of the clones, except he had some kind of glove on the left hand that was traced with blue light and circuitry. His eyes flashed open at once. He levitated in the air, completely on his own. His arms were crossed, and his head hung low. His legs stretched out to full length as they touched the ground.

His head came up in a flash, as did both his hands. Tendrils of lightning ripple from each fingertip and surrounded Aelita. She screamed in terror. The others charged forward. His right hand whipped out his pistol. Three rounds, one for each other member, and they were on the ground in pain. "He's draining her health, rapidly." Jeremy said. Then he stopped, and she slumped on the ground.

"Is she gone?" Ulrich asked.

"No, she's at 1 hp." Then Xavier grabbed her with his right hand.

His voice was cold and systematic. "The ultimate contamination of Lyoko has occurred." His left had lifted up, pointed at the core of Lyoko. "Activating the self-destruction of Lyoko." The his palm sprayed the core with electricity. Each, individual piece shattered. Then, he began to levitate. A smile crawled across his face as he drifted off outside of Carthage, Aelita in hand.

There was a loud groan, as if the entire room was ready to collapse. Jeremy's voice quickly followed. "You guys need to get out **NOW!**" Before anyone could respond, a loud splash erupted under. From the hole in the bottom of the room, a pillar of digital sea erupted like a geyser. Blocks shaken loose began falling from the walls.

"Look out!" William yelled at Ulrich. He whipped around in a flash. A falling block crushed him instantly. A loud yelp was swiftly silenced. Another landed behind William, launching him through the air, as well as Yumi. He didn't see where Yumi landed, but he flew near the top of the room, striking a pillar with his head, then blacking out cold. The last thing his conscious mind heard was a scream, swiftly drowned in the crash of metal.


End file.
